Options to smooth concrete floor?

[Aaron_W]

My basement is partially finished, and one section has a concrete floor with a rough pebbly surface. I use this area as a shop space and the rough surface makes it hard to roll chairs, tool boxes etc.

Do I have any options for providing a tough and durable smooth surface other than breaking it out and pouring a new floor? I'm thinking a thin layer of concrete isn't going to hold up and just make things worse.

The floor surface needs to hold up to a load of up to 1000lbs on 4-6" caster wheels as you would find on a roll around tool box.

 

[The Cobbler]

looks like a Candidate for grinding

 

[Kaizen]

Strange floor. Have a side view of it? Maybe just not troweled. Grinding would take forever. Self leveler I believe is pretty hard if poured thick enough. Not like you are rolling around that much weight. Not sure how much of an area you are talking. 4k concrete with a binder might be the cheapest


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[Aaron_W]

Strange floor. Have a side view of it? Maybe just not troweled. Grinding would take forever. Self leveler I believe is pretty hard if poured thick enough. Not like you are rolling around that much weight. Not sure how much of an area you are talking. 4k concrete with a binder might be the cheapest


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Can't really get a side view, but where I can see the edges, best guess is 3-4" thick.

Yes, I think the main issue is that it was just poured and allowed to dry with no effort at getting a smooth finish. I've gotten better surface finish on fence post holes. Old house so no idea when or why this was done.

Area is probably 10x20 give or take a few feet.

I was hoping there might be a self leveling epoxy type product that could be painted on that could even things up.

 

[ConCretin]

Yea, it looks like the aggregate is still exposed because they didn't bother to float the floor. There are a number of products such as Ardex that would level and smooth the surface. The existing rough surface will actually help with bonding the overlay. I'd be a little concerned with the amount of weight you are putting on the floor with your toolbox casters but I think it's worth a try.

 

[Kaizen]

Can't really get a side view, but where I can see the edges, best guess is 3-4" thick.

Yes, I think the main issue is that it was just poured and allowed to dry with no effort at getting a smooth finish. I've gotten better surface finish on fence post holes. Old house so no idea when or why this was done.

Area is probably 10x20 give or take a few feet.

I was hoping there might be a self leveling epoxy type product that could be painted on that could even things up.

Self leveling topcoat will do that nicely but it’s expensive which is why I suggested concrete. Shop around see what fits your ambition. Good winter project


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[Xyorde]

IMO epoxy is the worst. Easy to chip, blister, stain and difficult to repair. Bare concrete would be better. FloCrete is the best surface I've ever brewed on. Lot of threads here on flooring options.

 

[Aaron_W]

Yea, it looks like the aggregate is still exposed because they didn't bother to float the floor. There are a number of products such as Ardex that would level and smooth the surface. The existing rough surface will actually help with bonding the overlay. I'd be a little concerned with the amount of weight you are putting on the floor with your toolbox casters but I think it's worth a try.

You are talking about something like this?

Ardex SD-T



I don't move a lot of weight often, mostly just nice to be able to move it away from the wall for cleaning, drop something and it rolls underneath etc. The pits are just deep enough to make rolling difficult.

Would putting a tough hard tile like cement or laminate over the leveling concrete around the heavy items be helpful or likely to make the problem worse? It seems like that would help distribute the load. Looks like 40 square feet of tile would only be $200 or so.

 

[HC33]

Whatever you do concrete dust gets everywhere and is a major pain to get it cleaned up and dont breath it in . wear a mask and eye protection.

 

[ConCretin]

You are talking about something like this?

Ardex SD-T

That is the type of product you are looking for. Some products are designed for use under flooring while others are good for use as exposed toppings. You appear to have the right kind. A quick read of the specs indicates it's good for a minimum thickness of 1/4". (Some products are designed to feather out to nothing)

To maintain the 1/4" min thickness, you'd have to do the entire floor or make a saw cut around the perimeter of the repair area and remove some existing concrete to create a 1/4"+ vertical face for the Ardex to terminate against. This would take a little work but make for a neat and durable repair.

I think the SD-T would hold up pretty well even with your rolling cabinets. It has an advertised compressive strength of 6000+ psi and with no thin, feathered edges you are avoiding the main problem area. Hope that helps.

 

[Armorpoxy]

We would recommend that you use a self leveling rersurfacer such as below. Grinding this down is not easily accomplished unless you have large grinders and lots of time. Once coated with below you can epoxy or polyurea over it, or use a densifer/sealer like Ghostshield which we carry.

https://armorpoxy.com/products/lati...st-drying-self-leveling-resurfacer-50-lb-bag/

 

[Kaizen]

You are talking about something like this?

[

Would putting a tough hard tile like cement or laminate over the leveling concrete around the heavy items be helpful or likely to make the problem worse? It seems like that would help distribute the load. Looks like 40 square feet of tile would only be $200 or so.

No it would not be a problem nor would it help. Go grab a bag at hd or your local store and box out a corner. Pour it and see if you like it. You will need to frame it at the edges. It does flow like water but great as it finds level. At half to 1 inch thick I don’t think you will have any problems. Make sure you clean existing concrete well to get dirt out.


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[Aaron_W]

Thank you.

I've done a little concrete work, but never had to add over the top of existing and I know there can be issues. I have seen the results of poor patchwork which just breaks out after a short while.

 

[spudley]

Area is probably 10x20 give or take a few feet.

Looks like 40 square feet of tile would only be $200 or so.

Something ain't adding up ...

 

[Aaron_W]

Something ain't adding up ...

I don't have to cover the whole floor. I was thinking of just doing the area where the heavy stuff on wheels is.

Nice thing about a shop in a semi-finished basement, things don't have to be pretty, just functional.

 

[spudley]

Got it.
Years ago I worked at a plant that had really bad floors, but on a weekend they put down a leveling coating that could stand up to forklift traffic. The stuff was amazing and held up. I have no clue what it was or where to find it, but some good stuff is out there. Good luck.

 

[rpcraft]

I'd imagine the easiest thing to do would be to put down some surface material, like a layer of concrete or gunnite and then level and smooth off with a power trowel or something that will just keep it super smooth, rather than grinding it down. Especially if that floor already has a ton of quartz in it.

 

[Mikla]

I wouldn't over think it and just get some concrete leveler that can be feathered. Give the floor a good cleaning (personally I would power wash or see if you can rent a shot blast machine) and then put down a thin scratch coat layer of leveler. Then I would put a garage tile floor of your choice over the top as well.